CHINA/US: Rivals, Partners in Asia

With the Six Party Talks to denuclearise North Korea once again on the ropes and the world reeling from a deepening financial crisis, the United States is looking to China for help.

POLITICS-MALAYSIA: Protestors Pedal to Parliament, Brave Police

Dozens of cyclists promoting workers' rights are on an extraordinary odyssey across the country, scheduled to climax with the handing over of memorandums in Parliament on Thursday.

CARIBBEAN: Feeling the Effects of Global Recession

Maria Harvey of St. Lucia was looking forward to a bonus this Christmas, but when her employers presented her with an envelope on Monday, it left her shattered.

BOOKS-US: When Neocons Ruled Washington

In the first two pages of his book on the neoconservative movement, historian Stephen Sniegoski tells us that U.S. Mideast policy during the George W. Bush presidency has been "colossally erroneous" and "disastrous to U.S. interests", that the Iraq War is a "blunder of colossal proportions", and that an attack on Iran is a "highly likely" "disaster" unless the country "eschews all elements of the Middle East war policy".

GENDER-KENYA: Renewed Campaign to Protect Women's Land Rights

Pressure is mounting to include a National Land Policy that ensures equal access to land between women and men in Kenya's new constitution.

POLITICS-AFRICA: Constitutions Affirmed as Essential for Democracy

One of Africa's main challenges is ensuring that constitutions reflect a consensus amongst all sectors of the population, including vulnerable groups such as women, are rarely taken into account in constitutional strengthening initiatives.

MEDIA-PHILIPPINES: Journo Killings Threaten Press Freedom

Three years after Marlene Esperat was shot dead in her living room, she continues to symbolise the plight of journalists in the Philippines who are increasingly being victimised or murdered in a country which prides itself on having a free press.

POLITICS: Scant Support for U.S. Naval Forces in the Gulf

A new poll by WorldPublicOpinion.org conducted in 21 nations around the world finds widespread opposition to the United States maintaining naval forces based in the Persian Gulf.

DEVELOPMENT-INDIA: Reclaiming Land and Farmers for Rice Cultivation

After achieving human development indices that approach developed country standards, people living on this verdant strip facing the Arabian sea are attempting a ‘back-to-basics’ return to paddy cultivation.

Ecobreves – MEXICO: Extension for Overflowing Garbage Dump

For the fifth time in five years, the Mexico City government has won a postponement for closing down the Bordo Poniente, the capital's largest garbage dump, which is full beyond capacity.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: A Non-Polluting Charcoal Oven?

The National Space Research Institute, based in the southern Brazilian city of São José dos Campos, has developed an oven that reduces the emissions of smoke and dangerous gases in the small-scale production of plant-based charcoal.

Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Complaints Against Draining of Paraná Delta

Residents of the town of Baradero, in the north of Buenos Aires province, have sounded the alarm about the construction of embankments intended to drain part of the Paraná River delta.

RIGHTS-CAMBODIA: New Laws May Curb NGO Activity

Cambodia could be the latest Asian country to adopt tighter laws governing the activities of local and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) - a move many believe will put further pressure on the country’s already fragile democratic space.

RIGHTS-MOROCCO: Abolition Activists Failing to Stir Campuses

Anti-death penalty activists have yet to carry through their plan for a new boost of campaigning in Moroccan universities, facing a combination of outright hostility and political apathy from some students.

CLIMATE CHANGE: Poznan Produces a ‘Vision Gap’

The United Nations climate change conference ended on a bitter note in the early hours of Saturday.

AGRICULTURE-ETHIOPIA: Can Foreign-Owned Farms Solve Food Crisis?

Tola Melka was planning to throw a traditional party at his shanty home in rural central Ethiopia, anticipating a bumper harvest. He was grief-stricken in late October when unexpected rains totally destroyed his almost ripened teff, a native staple crop used to make spongy bread.

ENVIRONMENT-VIETNAM: River Pollution Scandal a Wake-up Call

The rising level of pollution in Vietnam’s waterways has been common knowledge for years. But in October it became a public scandal after Vedan, a Taiwanese maker of monosodium glutamate (MSG), confessed to discharging toxic waste through hidden pipes into a river for years.

POLITICS-DR CONGO: Talks Near Collapse

Rebels are being blamed for the slow progress of talks seeking to end fighting in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

MEXICO: Attempt to Revive Death Penalty Doomed

A proposed constitutional amendment introduced in the Mexican Congress to reinstate the death penalty stands virtually no chance of approval. But it has generated a broad public debate that is expected to grow more heated.

CLIMATE CHANGE: EU Gives Polluters a Christmas Gift

Polluting industries have received an early Christmas gift from European Union leaders who have agreed to weaken their proposals for fighting climate change in order to protect short-term commercial gains.

POLITICS-US: Conservative Pastor’s Star on the Rise

For a president who had little to do but pardon turkeys on Thanksgiving and throw the switch on the national Christmas tree, little to look forward to but packing his bags and evacuating the White House, and less positive accomplishments to look back on than most presidents, this year's World AIDS Day was clearly a high point. And Pastor Rick Warren was there to share the spotlight with him.